February 1, 2005

It's a 'H' sound!

I wished Singapore radio DJs and TV newscasters would get their pronunciation of Spanish names correct. I keep hearing them pronounce England football club Chelsea's manager Jos� Mourinho wrongly. True, it's spelt as 'Jos�' but surely as professional DJs and newcasters, these people should know that in Spanish the 'J' is equivalent to the 'H' sound in English! Argh...it just annoys me how unprofessional these people are!

Posted by DSD at February 1, 2005 8:20 AM
Comments

I agree! Although I know the French pronounce "Jose" with the usual "je" sound. Hmm, I wonder how the Chelsea manager would pronounce his own name.

Posted by: monoceros at February 1, 2005 1:50 PM

it's not quite a 'H' but one with a back of your mouth vela huskiness...

anyways... not everyone speaks a foreign language... nor can they get the right pronounciations or features right even if they try... i can't roll my Rs... sigh!

Posted by: tiggie at February 1, 2005 7:20 PM

Yes, not everyone speaks a foreign language but I expect that they, as professionals in the broadcasting industry, should know the correct pronunciation of certain words and terms. If it were the French 'R', German 'ich', or Indian 'R' i can understand that it's tough. But i think in this instance, it's not difficult to get the pronunciation correct.

Posted by: dsd at February 1, 2005 8:25 PM

Jose Mourinho is not Spanish. He is a Portuguese and if I am not mistaken, "J" is not pronounced with a "h" sound in his language. I may be wrong on this.

Posted by: D W at February 2, 2005 2:24 PM

Ok, my mistake then. But I'm sure the broadcasters are pronouncing it wrong.

Posted by: dsd at February 2, 2005 2:29 PM

Hi, I came across your blog while googling for Singaporean/Malaysian recipes (I lived in Singapore for a year, from 2002-2003). Great pictures! No recipes but still I've had great fun reading all about your foodie travels, so keep up the great work.

I can help with this current conundrum, anyway: Jose Mourinho is definitely Portugese and Jose is pronounced with a J, like the French "je" (as suggested by someone above). Like the author Jose Saramago, who is also Portugese. Your DJs are correct, after all, at least this time!

Posted by: Kirie Naudon at February 4, 2005 1:08 AM

Hi Kirie, thanks for dropping a note and also thanks for the clarification. My mistake then! Apologies to the broadcasters whom i have wrongly maligned!

Posted by: dsd at February 4, 2005 8:51 AM